Trump on Payroll Tax Cut: I’ll do it Myself
President Trump threatened to suspend the payroll tax himself after lawmakers refused to incorporate the idea into the next COVID-19 relief package.
“I have the right to suspend it, and I may do it myself – I have the absolute right to suspend the payroll,” Trump told Fox News. “That’s an incentive to people – small businesses and businesses generally to hire back their workers.”
Trump added that he “would consider not signing” a relief package that doesn’t include the tax cut.
Trump’s decision to implement the tax cut without Congress would be a major victory for his reelection campaign and for working class Americans. According to author Stephen Moore, the tax holiday would produce an immediate 7.5% pay increase for every working American, putting more money into their pockets and reducing government spending.
Moore, a proud member of President Trump’s economic recovery task force, has urged the president to declare a national emergency, order the IRS to stop collecting the payroll tax, and instruct the Treasury to stop withholding payroll taxes. In response to Republicans’ concerns that the tax cut would harm Social Security and Medicare, Moore suggests the Treasury put bonds into those agencies.
Furthermore, Trump could promise to sign a future bill that forgives Americans of any tax debt incurred during the pandemic – a move that would make the 2020 election a “referendum on middle-class taxes.”
—
Lawmakers are rushing to complete another economic recovery package before a monthlong recess beginning this Friday. Aides reported little progress Tuesday, though Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) did express a willingness to support Democrats’ efforts to extend the current $600-per-week unemployment benefit.
“The American people, in the end, need help, and wherever this thing settles between the president of the United States and his team that has to sign it into law and the Democrat not-insignificant majority in the Senate and majority in the House is something I am prepared to support, even if I have some problems with certain parts of it,” said McConnell.
Most Republican lawmakers support a $200-per-week proposal based on concerns that increased benefits would incentivize Americans to remain unemployed.
Weekly unemployment claims have remained above 1 million since mid-March. Unemployment reached a record high in April, with roughly 14.7% of the population recorded as “jobless.” Numbers have improved somewhat since then as states start to reopen restaurants and other businesses.
I believe that the payroll tax holiday would be a great stimulus. I thing giving everyone $600 is a big mistake. Businesses are having trouble getting workers and when they get more money for not working it is absolutely the wrong thing to do. A $200 benefit would be ok so they can survive on that and their unemployment checks. I think any bill that is over four hundred billion is pure pork and unnecessary. If it exceeds that amount it should be vetoed and another try should be tried. no matter what the democrats do don’t let it go over four hundred billion which is still too much but I would accept it if there are no more stimulus bills allowed.
Bailouts for cities and states must be rejected and funding arts and other pork-barrel projects should be rejected and condemned.
As far as I am concerned all Democrats and all Republicans are crooks and hate the American people. Doing away with the payroll tax has nothing to do with people going back to work. This is just another scam on the people who are receiving social security. Omar all ready said that she is going to eliminate social security if the Democrats take the Senate and Presidency back. She also stated that the old retired people do not need anything. Omar wants to eliminate all people that are not working.
A) Eliminating the payroll tax does nothing for those who have lost employment due to the trump virus, it only puts money in the pockets of folks who are still working, and is detrimental to the solvency of the SS system. Clearly has no business being in a covid relief bill, which Congress understands, but the idiot in the WH is having a little trouble grasping (looking for votes in November perhaps, as opposed to the well being of the country?). B). What planet do you come from Walt, if you think any democrat wants to do away with Social Security? That is a Republican goal, hardly what one of the most progressive members of Congress would see as a plan. You need to stop and think “does this make sense?” before taking every right wing blurb you read as gospel…..
Mike you and Walt are both wrong. And any talk of elimination of old people is the agenda of the left. But they had better be careful. I’m 65 years old and I’ve done lived my life. I feel like I have nothing to lose. Us old guys would stand and fight.
Dan-Nothing I said is untrue. A payroll tax cut does nothing for unemployed workers and does affect the solvency of social security. And eliminating government funding of social security is a republican goal, not democrat. So you say I am wrong, but give no examples. Perhaps you need to face the facts instead of writing negative responses